Improvement in ladies  dress-skirt elevators



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIC THOS. V. PHELPS, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 56,341, dated July 10,1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, T. V. PHELPS, of the city and county of Worcester,and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Self-Adjusting Clasps for Looping up Ladies Dresses; andI do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of this specification, in which Figure 1represents a perspective view of my improved device before it is appliedto the dress. Fig. 2 represents a longitudinal central section of thedevice when applied to a dress ready for use in looping up the same.Fig. 3 represents a similar section after the dress has been looped up.The portion of the dress is shown in section in Figs. 2 and 3.

In the drawings, A represents a piece of tape or narrow cloth having aring, B, fastened to one end-in this case in a fold formed in the tapeby the insertion of an eyelet, c, as fully shown in the drawings.

0 and D represent two rings similar to that referred to above. The ringsO D are held in loops, the ends of the pieces of tape or cloth formingthe loops being fastened together-in this instance by an eyelet, d. Theend 0 of tape A is passed up through ring D on the under side,'and thenup, over, and back through ring 0, then down through ring B, as fullyshown in the drawings. Now, if the ends of the loops which hold theringsO and D are made fast to anything and the end 0 drawn, the rings 0and D are caused to close upon the tape which is held from slippingbetween them but when the end attached to ring B is pulled the end 0 iseasily drawn up or through between the rings 0 and D.

The inyention, as applied for the'purpose of looping up a dress, isshown in Figs. 2 and 3, in which E represents the dress in section, nearthe, bottom of which, upon the inside, the

' and D are fastened end 6 of tape A is fastened, as seen at I), whilethe ends of the loops which hold the rings 0 to the dress, as seen at(I. Now, by drawing upon the end B the dress will be drawn or looped up,as seen in Fig. 3. The weight of the dress is quite sufficient to keepthe rings 0 and B closed upon the tape, whereby the dress wil remainlooped up until rings O and D are loos ned or separated by hand,-whenthe dress falls by its ownweight to its original position shown in Fig.2. desired 11 umber of these looping devices may be employed.

By the use of ring B in the manner shown no derangement of the devicecan take place, while the whole arrangement is simple in constructionand enables a lady to quickly loop up or unloop her dress, and to anydesired height.

The rings O and D, being smooth, do not wear the tape, while they holdthe latter securely in any desired position. They may be attached to thedress at any height from the bottom.

The device may be used to advantage for other purposes, taking the placeof buckles in many instances.

The clasp is self-adjustingthat is, when the weight of the dress isallowed to hang upon tape A the effect is to draw rings 0 and Dtogether, as shown in the drawings, thereby producing the result abovestated.

Having described my improved clasp, what I claim as of my invention, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of rings 0, D, and B with the tape A, substantiallyas set forth.

2. The combination of the looping device above described with the bottomof the skirt of a dress, substantially as set forth.

THOS. V. PHELPS.

Witnesses THOS. H. DODGE, H. L. FULLER.

Any'

